Trader Joe’s raises pay temporarily for all its U.S. employees

SEATTLE, Wash. (AP) — Trader Joe’s is temporarily raising pay for all its employees in the U.S.

The decision was made in response to a recently passed mandate in Seattle requiring large grocery stores to increase pay by $4 an hour for its front-line workers during the coronavirus pandemic.

The Seattle Times reported that the post does not mention the mandate but a message to employees attributed the pay increase to the recently approved order in Seattle.

Company executives said in a letter that the $4-per-hour raise will continue throughout the pandemic or until employees are “eligible for vaccines as grocery workers.”